All,
I was keeping to the topic of potential uses for GPS and wireless technology. See article below.
Belgium employees take Intel outside
They call themselves the Intel Belgium Stunt Team.On the morning of the worldwide Intel® Centrino™ mobile technology launch they took their antics—and their office furniture—outdoors to show fellow Belgians just what Intel’s new mobile technology can do.Lead by Kristof Sehmke, Intel Benelux PR manager, and Kurt de Buck, Intel Benelux Mobility Champ, four employees picked up their desks, laptops, and office supplies and set up shop in Groenplaats, the famous and trendy Antwerp Square. Umbrellas, the shadow of the town’s cathedral, and shade from a statue of Peter Paul Rubens shielded the crew from the sun. To equip their wireless open-air office, the group even “installed” a water cooler, a coat hanger, and a healthy green plant.Normally, Internet aficionados would not choose Groenplaats as a venue for Web surfing—unless they had a really long phone cord. But in preparation for the official Intel Centrino mobile technology launch scheduled for later that day, Intel and Sinfilo, a local Wireless Internet Service Provider, had turned Groenplaats into one big hotspot.
With the hotspot live, the four Intel employees could send and receive e-mails, surf the Internet, and access the corporate network from their Intel Centrino mobile technology-based notebooks. The four notebooks wirelessly connected to three Intel access points fixed against the outside wall of the Antwerp Hilton Hotel.As the crew members went about their business, to the bemusement of passersby, news of the stunt hit the local airwaves.“With the weather gods on our side, the stunt took place under a clear blue sky,” says Sehmke. “The open-air office attracted the attention of many passers-by as well as one TV station and two national radio stations, one of which reported live on the goings-on at the square. A major portal site broadcast live video images through a Web cam installed on the square.” The good weather drew a steady stream of people strolling the square, says Sehmke. But they approached tentatively, he says, “because, ultimately we were working so they didn't know if they could disturb us.”While most people thought it “cool” that Intel allowed them to take their desks outside and work in open air, it wasn’t until they found out the guys did it without wires that they became totally impressed, says Sehmke.
“After we explained how it worked and what the potential is, almost everybody asked us if this was going to be installed continuously on the square so they could do it too,” he said. Due to the success and major recognition of the “stunt,” the city mayor is now working on making the square a permanent hotspot, says Sehmke. “With several universities around, as well as many office buildings, the square is the place to be during lunch times,” says Sehmke. “And when the sun comes out, whatever the temperature is, the terraces on the square are crammed with students and office workers. A permanent hotspot would allow them to work from the square and prolong their lunch break in the sun.”If the city succeeds in its campaign to make the square a permanent hotspot, you can count on finding the stunt duo there on lunch break—hatching their next plan, of course.* * *
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